A 2006 settlement required L.A. World Airports to regionalize air traffic, but an L.A. County report asserts the city made only ‘token efforts’ to comply.

By Dan Weikel, Los Angeles Times February 3, 2013, 11:30 p.m.

A report prepared for Los Angeles County’s top administrator claims the operators of LAX have virtually ignored legal requirements to reduce effects on the environment by dispersing growth in commercial flights to other airports in the region.

A 2006 court settlement in a series of lawsuits over expansion plans at Los Angeles International Airport ordered Los Angeles World Airports to begin regionalizing airline traffic.

But William T Fujioka, the chief executive for Los Angeles County, and a consultant’s report prepared for his office asserts that the city airport department has made only “token efforts” to comply with provisions of the settlement that seek a wider distribution of flights.

Fujioka’s views and the study’s conclusions were submitted as part of the public comments being gathered for the environmental review of the latest plans to improve the nation’s third largest airport.

The project is drawing intense scrutiny from opponents in nearby communities who have contested the LAX modernization plans of past mayoral administrations.

Among the current proposals is a controversial plan to separate the two northern runways by 260 feet, which has been recommended by airport staff as the preferred alternative for additional study. The city’s Board of Airport Commissioners is scheduled to vote on the recommendation Tuesday.